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BeagleBone Black project spotlight:Volumio

What is your go-to activity when you can’t sleep? For some it’s
reading a book or counting sheep, but for music and technology
enthusiast Michelangelo Guarise, it’s Volumio.

Volumio is a free and open-source Linux Audiophile music player for
embedded computers that, when paired with the
Sitara-processor-powered
BeagleBone Black,
can transform an entire building into a connected
audio center. Inspired by his passion for music, Guarise worked
tirelessly on Volumio with the help of users worldwide.

“What you have here is the result of sleepless coding nights,
precious feedback from our users, and a pure, intense, visceral
passion for music and technology,” Guarise said.

In fact, Guarise cites “passion” as the only thing users need to
have to be able to use Volumio. It can be downloaded for free and
comes ready to start playing audio files immediately.

After the initial download, Volumio has to be flashed onto an SD
card and connected through a network. Volumio can be downloaded
with Windows, Macintosh or Linux systems. From there, users can go
to volumio.local/ and use the WebUi to start listening.

Volumio is equipped to play all music—FLAC, MP3, WAV, AAC, ALAC and
Musepack files are all compatible, in addition to streaming
Internet radio. It can be controlled via WebUi from a smartphone,
tablet or computer. BeagleBone Black supports the program well
because of its large expandability and affordable price.

Guarise wants Volumio users to be able to sit back, relax and
listen to their favorite tunes from anywhere in their house.
Multiple BeagleBone Black platforms can be connected, allowing
users to select from which device the music will be flowing.
Simultaneous playback mode is going to be available soon, giving
developers the chance to build an open-source multi-room audio
system.

He gives credit to his fellow music and technology gurus who have
worked on the open-source code. "This project relies also on tons
of good code made by developers all around the world. What we did
was just put it all together and make it act as one ecosystem,”
Guarise said.

Volumio hosts a blog and forum on its website for anyone working on
the code and improving the project. It is always being updated to
give users the best version.

Even though Guarise is studying psychology, he works endlessly with
music. He has a mix of valve and digital amplifiers that he built
himself during a few sleepless nights. His passion for music and
technology inspires him to work on projects like Volumio and
struggle to turn his volume down.